


golden leaves

by AshesStarsAndRedStringsOfFate



Series: Inktober 2019 [4]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Don't copy to another site, Fluff, Forests, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Inktober 2019, M/M, Minor Character Death, Other, Sympathetic Deceit Sanders, leaves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-04
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-11-24 02:30:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20900174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshesStarsAndRedStringsOfFate/pseuds/AshesStarsAndRedStringsOfFate
Summary: Ethan is a woodsman. Logan is a dryad. Will this end in tragedy? Written for Inktober Day 4: Leaves!





	golden leaves

**Author's Note:**

> Heheheheheheheheheheh :)

“Stupid… tree!” Ethan hissed, swinging his axe into the tree trunk with even more force than usual. “Why won’t you just fall down?” The tree seemed to laugh at him and did not move, taunting Ethan for his failures. Ethan growled and kept hacking at the tree, determined to get this tree to fall so he could go home and make more coffee. 

“Why are you cutting my tree?” a soft voice came from behind Ethan. He paused, lowering his hatchet, and turned around, eyes widening in horror as he took in the sight before him. A tall, slim person stood in front of him, blood dripping from some place on their torso. His skin was tinged dark brown and appeared slightly rough. Large dark green eyes seemed to drill into Ethan’s soul, misted over with pain and fear. Spiky black hair tinged with pine green wreathed his face, swaying slightly in the wind. Ethan dropped the hatchet entirely as the whole situation processed for him. He’d been hacking at the tree of a dryad. He had almost killed a dryad. 

“I- I am so, so sorry, I can find another one-” Ethan stammered, stepping away from the tree. “Is there-is there anything I can do to help?” 

“No, I should be fine in a bit…” the dryad muttered, taking one step before promptly collapsing. Ethan yelped and dropped his hatchet, diving forward to catch the dryad. They groaned, eyelids fluttering as they looked up at Ethan, pressing a hand to their stomach. “I-I-” 

“How do I fix this?!” Ethan gasped, setting the dryad on the ground and reaching for his hatchet. The dryad flinched, so Ethan slowed down and showed them that he was just putting it back on his belt. The dryad relaxed at that, and Ethan then picked them up again and began to walk back to his cabin. 

“It’ll be okay,” he soothed. “I’m so sorry, but I’m going to fix this.” The dryad simply let out a cough and shook their head, sending a weak smile in Ethan’s direction. 

“No, it is not worth it. The damage is… worse than I thought.” Ethan choked back a sob and walked faster, determined to fix this. Why hadn’t he checked that the tree wasn’t a home to a dryad before he began to chop away at it? Why had he been so stupid and selfish? 

“Just let me go,” the dryad whispered. “It’s okay.” 

“No, you deserve to live,” Ethan snarled, beginning to run as his front porch came into view. “We’re almost there.” 

“Ethan.” He froze, looking down at the dryad cradled in his arms. “It’s okay. Let me go.” In his shock, he dropped the dryad, and before he could even blink, or scream, or do anything, the body had vanished into a pile of pine needles. 

* * *

Years later, Ethan had grown up. He was no longer a weedy teenager; instead, he was a middle-aged man who lived alone in the woods, warning off loggers who forgot to check if the tree they were about to cut was lived in. Nothing could make up for his mistake, he knew, but he would do the best he could to even get close. 

One day in mid-autumn, he was walking back from warning off another logger when he saw Him. A tall, slim forest spirit stood in his path, smiling. A crown of orange leaves nestled in his dark red hair, and light freckles were splayed across his light brown skin. He was gorgeous, and familiar. 

“... you were the dryad I killed all those years ago,” Ethan whispered. The dryad nodded and stepped forward, extending a hand to Ethan. 

“Yes, but you have done well to atone. Thanks to you, the dryads of this forest no longer fear their death. Thank you.” 

Ethan shakily grabbed and shook the hand. “I… I was just trying to help…” 

“Exactly,” the dryad laughed. “And you have.” He bowed then, straightening with a large smile on his face. “I am Logan, once a pine dryad, but now reborn to the oaks. I thank you for your service to the forest, Ethan.” 

“Of course… of course Logan.” The dryad simply nodded and vanished again, leaving only the leaves of his crown drifting to the forest floor. Ethan picked one up and grinned, feeling the soft healing magic tingling through him. He knew if he looked in a mirror, he would find his youth restored. But for now… for now, he had tea to make. He had guests coming soon, after all, and he would hate to be a terrible host. With that thought, he tucked the orange leaf into his pocket and began to walk back to his cabin, whistling a hauntingly familiar tune as he did, calling all the wayward souls in the woods as he left. 

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments! 
> 
> ~Logan


End file.
